In this letter, an n-type short-channel negative capacitance FinFET (NC-FinFET) with a hysteresis window of 0.48 V, an on-/off-current ratio of 10 ⁷ , and a sub20-mV/decade average subthreshold slope (SS _avg ) that is intended to overcome the Boltzmann limit (i.e., the physical limit in the SS, which is 60 mV/decade at 300 K), is experimentally demonstrated vs. a baseline FinFET with an SS _avg of ~105 mV/decade. In our testing, we confirmed that the large hysteresis window in a short-channel NC-FinFET can be suppressed by using an appropriate source/drain extension length (L _ext ). As L _ext in the NC-FinFET is increased, the gate-to-source/drain capacitance (CGS/CGD) decreased and the hysteresis window narrows.

The effect of a triple metal-gate (TMG) on the performance and on the ambipolar current in a TMG vertical tunnel field-effect transistor with triple metal-gate (TMG-TFET) is investigated using technology computer-aided design simulation. The TMG-TFET is designed to tackle the performance as well as the ambipolar current, simultaneously, by modulating the TMG parameters-the work function of the TMG and/or the length of each MG-that have critical impacts on the energyband diagrams of the channel region. The tempered on-/offcurrent ratio of 10 ⁸ and the steep average subthreshold slope of 43.5 mV/decade at a power supply voltage of 0.5 V are ascribed to the formation of an energy barrier in the channel by the optimal device parameters. It is found that two main flaws in a conventional (single-material gate) TFET, which are the degraded on-state current and the ambipolar current, can be successfully controlled by adjusting the TMG structure.

Supercapacitors have shown great potential as a possible solution to the increasing global demand for next-generation energy storage systems. Charge repositioning is based on physical or chemical mechanisms. There are three types of supercapacitors—the electrochemical double layer, the pseudocapacitor, and a hybrid of both. Each type is further subdivided according to the material used. Herein, a detailed overview of the working mechanism as well as a new method for capacitance enhancement are presented.

Simply including either single ferroelectric oxide layer or threshold selector, we can make conventional field effect transistor to have super steep switching characteristic, i.e., sub-60-mV/decade of subthreshold slope. One of the representative is negative capacitance FET (NCFET), in which a ferroelectric layer is added within its gate stack. The other is phase FET (i.e., negative resistance FET), in which a threshold selector is added to an electrode (e.g., source or drain) of conventional field effect transistor. Although the concept of the aforementioned two devices was presented more or less recently, numerous studies have been published. In this review paper, by reviewing the published studies over the last decade, we shall de-brief and discuss the history and the future perspectives of NCFET/phase FET, respectively. The background, experimental investigation, and future direction for developing the aforementioned two representative steep switching devices (i.e., NCFET and phase FET/negative resistance FET) are to be discussed in detail.

Feedback field-effect transistor (FBFET), an alternative switching device, has received attention due to its ideal steep switching feature. By utilizing the positive feedback phenomenon, the total amount of electrons and holes contributing to drain current is sharply surged. Although the device has conspicuous subthreshold slope (SS) properties, advanced research for structure and performance of it is lacking. In this paper, single-gated and spacer-less silicon-on-insulator (SOI) FBFET with extremely steep switching (~1 mV/decade) characteristic is studied in various aspects; SS attribute, performance variation of scaled FBFET, the impact of structural variation, the gate margin for the device layout, and the hysteresis window. The prospect of SOI FBFET as a future candidate for CMOS logic application is investigated in detail.